45 celebrities you might not know have famous parents

Born Vera Jayne Palmer, Mansfield was an actress, nightclub entertainer, and one of the earliest Playboy Playmates. She had three kids with her second husband, actor and bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay, one of which was Mariska.

Mariska and her two brothers were asleep in the backseat of the car with their mother when she and the other two adults in the car were killed in a car accident. Mariska was only three years old. Her mother was 34.

Mariska opened up about losing Mansfield in a 2017 interview with Closer Weekly.

"In some ways, being the daughter of a Hollywood icon has been a burden," she said. "I used to hate constant references to my mom because I wanted to be known for myself. Losing my mother at such a young age is the scar of my soul."

The two were both in the "Harry Potter" films, Domhnall as Bill Weasley and Brendan as Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody. He and his father have been in multiple projects together, including "Studs" and "Calvary." Domhnall's brother Brian is also an actor. Domhnall told Broadway.com in 2006 that he was initially wary of pursuing an acting career because of his father.

"I'd been very certain about not wanting to do the acting thing because of my father," he said. "I thought I'd always have the father-son thing of 'He got you the part.'"

Lenny and Bonet divorced when Zoë was five, but Bonet has been with actor Jason Momoa for 12 years. The couple married in a quiet ceremony this October and have two children together: Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha Momoa and Lola Iolani Momoa, making them Zoë's half-siblings.

In 2017, Lily included an open letter in her book of personal essays, "Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me," in which she forgave her father for not being present in her life after her parents divorced in 1994.

"I forgive you for not always being there when I needed and for not being the dad I expected," she wrote. "I forgive the mistakes you made. And although it may seem like it's too late, it's not. There's still so much time to move forward."

Brian can currently be seen on MSNBC and is the host of the network's program "The 11th Hour With Brian Williams."

Allison, who recently wrapped "Girls," is currently filming "Patrick Melrose," a limited TV series also starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jennifer Jason Leigh.

The "Star Trek" and "Wonder Woman" actor takes after his parents. Gilford had roles in films including "Beware! The Blob" and "Satan's School for Girls" before he retired to become a psychotherapist. Robert was best-known for starring on "CHiPs" and was recently on an episode of "Veep."

Bill and Hawn were married from 1976 until their divorce in 1982. Hawn, who rose to fame on the sketch comedy show "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" and then became an Oscar-winning actress, has been with Kurt since 1983. Hawn recently starred alongside Amy Schumer in "Snatched" and Kurt was in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2."

Oliver recently starred on "Scream Queens," while Kate most recently appeared in "Marshall."

Rashida's parents played her parents on the pilot of her show "Angie Tribeca," but she recast him.

She told Conan O'Brien that when they realized the part wasn't going to be just a cameo they "just wanted to give somebody else a shot."

Quincy has had a few acting roles, but has mostly stuck with compositions, musical scores, and producing. Lipton recently starred on "Twin Peaks."

Jolie made her acting debut alongside her dad in "Lookin' to Get Out" and both of them are Academy Award winners.

The two have had an often contentious and back-and-forth relationship for years. She legally changed her last name from Voight to Jolie. They were estranged for nearly seven years.

In an interview with Vanity Fair in July 2017, Jolie described her father's relationship with her kids.

"He's been very good at understanding they needed their grandfather at this time," she said. "I had to do a therapy meeting last night and he was just around. He knows kind of the rule — don't make them play with you. Just be a cool grandpa who's creative, and hang out and tell stories and read a book in the library."

John had previously worked on the soap "Search for Tomorrow" and brought Jennifer along to be an extra.

"I must have been thirteen," the actress told Esquire. I can still see this little yellow ice-skating dress that I was psyched to be in that morning. At that age, it was thrilling to just sit in the makeup chair."

The Swedish family is dominating Hollywood with some of their hit projects. Stellan is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in "Thor," "Thor: The Dark World," and "Avengers: Age of Ultron." He was recently in "Borg/McEnroe." Alexander is best known for "True Blood" and his Emmy-winning role in "Big Little Lies," Gustaf stars on "Vikings" and will be on "Westworld," and Bill was recently the terrifying Pennywise in "It." Valter has been in more Swedish projects, including "Lords of Chaos."

Liv grew up believing Todd Rundgren was her father and later learned that Steven was actually her dad. She met Steven for the first time when she was eight.

"After we met, he, Steven, started calling and we'd go see him," she told Wonderland Magazine in 2011. "He was just out of rehab, so part of going through those steps is making amends by reaching out to my mom after years of being a drug addict and not ever being there. He'd never met me before."

She had a surreal experience of figuring out that Steven was her dad.

"I kind of figured it out because he looked exactly like me," she said on "The Jonathan Ross Show." "I have a sister named Mia who is a year younger than me and I saw her standing at the side of the stage at a concert and I was literally like looking at my twin."

Liv and Steven have since grown close.

She also told the magazine that she loves Rundgren and is grateful for how he raised her.

"I'm so grateful to him; I have so much love for him," she said. "You know, when he holds me it feels like daddy. And he's very protective and strong."

Acting runs in the Sutherland blood. Sarah's grandfather and Kiefer's father, Donald, is also an actor. He played President Snow in the "The Hunger Games" film series.

Don is well known for his role on the hit series "Miami Vice." Griffith was known for "Body Double" and "Working Girl" in the 1980s, but she'll be seen next in "The Disaster Artist." Dakota acted alongside her mother in "Crazy in Alabama," which was directed by her then-stepfather actor Antonio Banderas. Her maternal grandmother is actress Tippi Hedren.

Diana's long and illustrious music career began with her leading The Supremes, and then resulted in her own solo music and subsequent film career. Tracee is well-known for her comedic roles, including "Girlfriends." The two are incredibly close. Tracee (and other members of the Ross family) honored Diana and her iconic career at the 2017 American Music Awards with a lifetime achievement award; Tracee even wore an outfit similar to one her mom wore in the past.

She's a bit of an international treasure in my opinion," Tracee told People about honoring her mom. "I'm excited that a younger generation gets to witness that, even just through the television screen ... Music reaches into your heart, and my mom's voice has been a part of people's lives for a long time."

The Roberts family features multiple actors. Emma's aunt, Eric's sister, also happens to be Julia Roberts. Watching her aunt Julia is what got Emma interested in acting. She told Allure that visiting the set of "Erin Brockovich" got her hooked.

"I'd run and hide in her makeup trailer and hear, 'Where's Emma? It's time for bed. She has to go home,'" she said. "I remember it feeling like summer camp, just the feeling of creativity."

Emma's mom, Kelly Cunningham, and dad broke up when she was young and got into a custody battle, which Eric lost.

Frank made his film debut as an extra in his dad's movie "Welcome to Sarajevo." Frank currently stars on "Fear the Walking Dead." Stephen currently appears on "The Tunnel" and had a small guest part on "The Crown."

The Howard family comes from a long line of industry members. Ron is known for staring on "Happy Days," creating "Arrested Development," and recently stepped in to direct "Solo," the Han Solo stand-alone film after Christopher Miller and Phil Lord left the project.

Sam is well-known for his role on "Law & Order," which he starred on from 1994 until it ended in 2010. He currently stars on two Netflix series: "Grace & Frankie" and "Godless." Katherine has been acting for a few years now, but her breakout came in "Inherent Vice." Along with her roles in the Harry Potter spin-off series "Fantastic Beasts," she joined the "Alien" series with "Alien: Covenant" and will also star in "Alien: Covenent 2."

Katie is David's daughter from a short relationship with model Sherry William. After the couple split, Katie was raised by her mom and stepfather. David, who died in November, was best known for starring on "The Partridge Family," which led to his musical career. Katie can currently be seen on "Arrow."

David told People in February that he didn't have a close relationship with his daughter.

"I wasn't her father. I was her biological father but I didn't raise her," he said. "She has a completely different life."

But he did add that he was "proud of her."

Scott looks a lot like his father and even dressed like Clint's character from "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" for Halloween in 2016.

Scott told Variety that he has to audition for his dad's movies and has been turned down before. He had a small part in "Gran Torino," but didn't land a spot in "J. Edgar."

The Barrymore family is one of the most long-lasting dynasties in Hollywood, extending back to the 1800s. Drew has kept the acting bug going.

Danner is an Emmy Award-winning actress for "Huff" and recently starred on "Gypsy." The two have appeared in a few projects together, including the miniseries "Cruel Doubt." They played mother and daughter in "Sylvia," where Paltrow portrayed poet Sylvia Plath.

The father and son were in "The Great Buck Howard" together.

Colin told CBS This Morning in 2015 that his father supported his acting career.

"He said, 'If this is what you want to do, great, but you really have to want to do it because if you don't it's gonna drive you crazy,' and that proved to be right because even though it is what I love to do, it still drives me crazy from time to time," he said.

Laura is next going to appear in "Star Wars: The Last Jedi." Ladd is an Oscar-nominated actress and recently starred on Hallmark's "Chesapeake Shores." Laura and her mom both earned nominations for acting together in "Rambling Rose." Bruce is also an Oscar-nominated actor and has more than five films scheduled for release in 2018.

King emerged on the music scene with her debut album "Love Stuff" in 2015 and is currently working on new music. Schneider started his career on "Saturday Night Live" and was recently in Adam Sandler's "Sandy Wexler."

Norah and her father didn't have much of a relationship until she was 18 years old and she didn't see him much a young child. After a period of estrangement, the two connected. Jones told The Independent in 2012 that they had connected and she liked she was already an established musician on her own.

"I feel like I don't have anything to prove any more," she said. "People think of me separately from him now, and that's great. I love my dad and we have a very good relationship now."

Ice Cube, who started his career as a member of rap group N.W.A., is also an actor, and his son is following in his footsteps. O'Shea will next appear in "Den of Thieves" and Ice Cube will be in "Last Friday."

Kate starred in "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" and met Spielberg on the set. The family is close and often attends events together.

Miley began acting at 13 years old and landed the role of Hannah Montana in the hit Disney Channel series. She starred in the show alongside her father, Billy Ray Cyrus. With the show's success, Miley became a child star and then transitioned into a musician. Her album, "Bangerz," was nominated for a Grammy in 2015.

Meanwhile, Billy has had his own very successful music career. He rose to fame in the early '90s with his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart." Since then, he has released 16 studio albums and continues to release hit songs today, including "Old Town Road" with Lil Nas X.

Jaden began acting at 7 when he starred alongside his father, Will Smith, in "The Pursuit of Happiness" in 2006. He has gone on to star in other movies, most notably "The Karate Kid," and now focuses on his singing career.

Their parents are successful movie stars. Will Smith recently won his first Oscar for "King Richard." Pinkett Smith is known for starring in the hit comedy "Girls Trip" and hosting the popular show "Red Table Talk."

At just 9 years old, Tatum starred in "Paper Moon" in 1973 and won an Oscar for best supporting actress when she turned 10. Her father, Ryan O'Neal, was already famous for his parts in the '60s and '70s, and he was also in the movie.

Tatum has continued acting, and she is known for films including "The Runaways" and "Little Darlings." But he has also landed roles on TV shows such as "Criminal Minds," "Sex and the City," and "Rescue Me."

In 1995, Rumer was just 7 when she made her film debut in "Now and Then," alongside her mother, Demi Moore. She appeared in "Striptease" the following year and has continued acting ever since. Most recently, she appeared in the Oscar-nominated movie "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood."

Her parents have enjoyed even more successful careers as film actors. Willis won a Golden Globe in 1997 for "Moonlighting," while Moore has been nominated for two Golden Globes.

Spelling began acting at 8 years old, scoring her first gig on TV in 1981 in "Vega$," but her big break came at 17 years old when she took on the role of Donna Martin in the hit series "Beverly Hills, 90210."

Spelling's famous father, Aaron Spelling, produced and created the series. Aaron also created hit shows like "Dynasty," "Melrose Place," and "Charmed."

Tori continued acting in bit roles and on reality TV. Eventually, she reprised her role as Donna in the 2009 revival of "90210."

"Girls" creator Lena Dunham has creativity in her blood.

Her mother is acclaimed photographer and artist, Laurie Simmons. Along with putting together amazing exhibits and gallery shows all over the world, Simmons also co-starred in Dunham's independent hit film "Tiny Furniture."

Both Emily and Zooey Deschanel are known best for being on successful TV shows ("Bones," "New Girl") and movies ("500 Days of Summer"), Zooey also has a strong music career.

But how did these two sisters get into the biz?

Their entertainment parents may have encouraged them. The Deschanel sisters' dad is cinematographer and director Caleb Deschanel, who has been nominated for the best cinematography Oscar six times for films like "The Patriot" and "The Passion of the Christ."

Mary Jo Deschanel, the sisters' mother, is also an actress who starred in "Twin Peaks" and "The Right Stuff."

Before Ben Stiller came into the world his parents were known for being pretty funny.

Jerry Stiller and his wife Anne Meara were known in the 1960s as the comedy duo Stiller and Meara.

The husband and wife team were fixtures on the late-night talk show scene.

The two continued to work once their son hit it big. Jerry played George Costanza's father, Frank, on "Seinfeld." Anne had recurring roles on "Sex and the City" and "The King of Queens."

Eugene Levy has been a fixture in comedy since the late 1970s.

He found even more fame and acclaim when he teamed with his son Dan to cocreate the hit show "Schitt's Creek."

The result was Emmy wins for the show and both Levys.

Sofia was thrust right into the business when her father, Francis Ford Coppola, had her play the child being baptized at the end of his 1972 masterpiece "The Godfather."

She would once again enter the franchise in her first major role on screen in 1990's "The Godfather Part III" as the daughter of Michael Corleone. The result was a tidal wave of controversy over her father casting her in such a demanding role.

However, Sofia has since rebounded. Now as a director she has made acclaimed dramas like "The Virgin Suicides" and "Lost in Translation."

She won a best original screenplay Oscar for "Lost in Translation.

The "Stranger Things" star is the daughter of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke, who were married from 1998 to 2005.

Along with playing Robin on the hit Netflix show, Maya has also starred in "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood" and the Netflix movie "Do Revenge."

It's pretty gutsy to get into the same profession that your mother dominates but Grace Gummer has held her own.

The daughter of Meryl Streep has had impressive performances on the stage, on TV ("The Newsroom," "Mr. Robot"), and in movies ("Larry Crowne," "Frances Ha").

Billie Lourd is part of Hollywood royalty.

She's the daughter of "Star Wars" legend Carrie Fisher and the granddaughter of iconic singer and actress Debbie Reynolds.

Lourd shared the screen with her mother in "The Force Awakens" and "The Last Jedi" before Fisher's death in 2016 (Reynolds died two days later).

Lourd has also had impressive performances in the 2019 movie "Booksmart" and TV shows "Scream Queens" and the "American Horror Story" anthology series.

Maude got her first taste of the big screen at 7 when she starred in her dad's hit 2005 comedy "The 40-Year-Old Virgin."

She followed that by starring in her dad's movies "Knocked Up," "Funny People," and "This is 40."

She currently plays Lexi Howard on "Euphoria."

Maude's mother, Leslie Mann, has starred opposite her in the above titles directed by her husband. She has had a thriving career since the 1990s starring in comedies like "The Cable Guy" and "17 Again."

Early in her career, Qualley studied dance and then moved on to modeling. She made her acting debut in the 2013 Gia Coppola movie "Palo Alto."

Since then, she's found acclaim on the HBO series "The Leftovers" and now in movies like "The Nice Guys" and "Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood."

Her mother is an acclaimed actress known best for starring in 1990s hits "Green Card," "Groundhog Day," and "Four Weddings and a Funeral."

Jamie Lee Curtis knows a little something about being an icon because she was raised by two.

Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh were an "it" Hollywood couple during their marriage through the 1950s (they divorced in 1962).

During that time, Curtis was a star in movies like "The Sweet Smell of Success," "The Defiant Ones" (which he was Oscar-nominated for), and "Some Like It Hot." While Leigh starred in movies directed by legends: Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil" and Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho," which would earn her an Oscar nomination.

Jamie has since carried the torch by forging an amazing career which all started with her debut big-screen role as Laurie Strode in the 1978 horror classic, "Halloween."